Ultraman Nexus
is the eighteenth entry of the Ultra Series, produced by Tsuburaya Productions, Chubu-Nippon Broadcasting (CBC), and Dentsu. The series aired on Tokyo Broadcasting System, including TBS, CBC, MBS, etc. The show ran from October 2, 2004 until June 25, 2005, with a total of 37 broadcast episodes. Subsequent DVD releases from Bandai Visual saw a brand new 45-minute episode EX and an extended 45-minute Director's Cut of episode 29. Production Ultraman Nexus was part of Tsuburaya Productions' Ultra N Project, an experiment in 2004 to re-invent Ultraman for a new generation of fans. Prior to this, however, Tsuburaya had begun a project called Ultra Collaboration 2 at the end of 2003, which involved a brand new radio-adaptation of Ultra Q called The Ultra Q Club. The project was also due to include a new TV series called Ultraman Noa in early 2004, which is presumably what Ultraman Nexus evolved into. Following the success of the new radio show, Tsuburaya forged ahead with a brand new season, Ultra Q: Dark Fantasy on April 6, 2004, a show which attracted top-rung directors such as (popular with fans for his work on the series and ). The first stage of the Ultra N Project was entitled Noa: Nostalgia. The project mascot, Ultraman Noa, was a rather radical change design - an all-silver Ultraman with protruding wings on its back. Ultraman Noa was mainly used for live stage shows and merchandising. The second stage of the project was Next: Evolution. This saw the creation of a new theatrical film, ULTRAMAN. The final stage was Nexus: Trinity - the piece that ties the entire project together. A radical change from the previous series Ultraman Cosmos, which was strictly aimed at young children, Ultraman Nexus was the first Ultraman TV series specifically aimed at adults. The show abandons the traditional monster-of-the-week stories in order to be replaced with longer character-based story arcs. Tsuburaya Productions had intended the show to be run during prime time, but the CBC network gave the show a 7:30 AM Saturday morning slot once ended its 49 episode run. The TV series received weak ratings which were attributed to the change in style and not being able to have the target demographic tune in, resulting in the series being cut short from around 50 episodes down to 37. Three months after its initial run, it was re-run in a new time slot. This time the show aired at 2:30 AM on Tuesday mornings and the ratings met the expectations that were set for the Ultra N Project. Following the ULTRAMAN movie, Tsuburaya ran a teaser trailer for Ultraman 2 Requiem. Due to the performance of Ultraman Nexus the film was canceled, and Tsuburaya moved ahead with a theatrical version of the then-current television series, Ultraman Mebius. Knowing that the Ultra N Project was intended to reboot the Ultra Series, it is worth noting that this is the third modern adaptation of Eiji Tsuburaya's Ultraman, with Ultraman Neos the second and Ultraman: The Ultimate Hero the first. Plot The TLT is a covert international anti-monster unit established secretly to combat Space Beasts, mysterious monsters that are out to attack humans in the year 2009. One of the TLT's new recruits, Kazuki Komon, is attacked by one of them prior to reporting for duty. However, he is saved by a silver giant that he names "Ultraman". What no one knows is that the silver giant is an Ultraman—to be precise, Ultraman Nexus, ready to fight the Space Beasts to save the planet Earth. Characters Ultras TLT *Night Raiders ** Eisuke Wakura ** Shiori Hiraki ** Mitsuhiko Ishibori * Yu Kirasawa * Yoichiro Matsunaga * Sara Mizuhara Supporting Characters *Mizuo Nonomiya *Jinzo Negoro *Saya Shuto *Hayato Kaimoto *Tougou Villains Monsters * Pedoleon * Bugbuzun * Galberos * Lafleya * Nosferu * Arakunia * Frogos * Golgolem * Kutuura * Grantella * Banpira * Lizarias * Megaflash * Ezmael * Beesectar * The Visitors Arsenal *Evoltruster *Divait Launcher *Divait Shooter *Pulse Breiger *Memory Eraser *Chrome Chester Alpha *Chrome Chester Beta *Chrome Chester Gamma *Chrome Chester Delta *Mega Cannon Chester *Strike Chester *Hyper Strike Chester Episodes Cast * : * : * : * : * : * : * : * : * : * : * : * : * : * : * : * : * : * : Voice actors * : , (When host Nagi Saijyo) * : * : * : * : Suit actors * : , * : * : * : * : Songs ;Opening theme * **Lyrics, Composition, & Arrangement: **Artist: doa **Episodes: 1-25 * **Lyrics: Daiki Yoshimoto **Composition & Arrangement: Akihito Tokunaga **Artist: doa **Episodes: 26-37 ;Ending theme * **Lyrics & Composition: U-ka Saegusa **Arrangement: **Artist: U-ka Saegusa in dB **Episodes: 1-13 * **Lyrics: U-ka Saegusa **Composition: **Arrangement: Masazumi Ozawa **Artist: U-ka Saegusa in dB **Episodes: 14-25 * **Lyrics & Artist: Rina Aiuchi **Composition: **Arrangement: Masazumi Ozawa **Episodes: 26-36 * **Lyrics, Composition, & Arrangement: **Artist: doa **Episodes: 37 Video Game A video game based on the series was produced by Bandai for the , under the name Ultraman Nexus. DVD Box Sets 513YyP5AMfL.jpg|Ultraman Nexus Complete DVD Box Notes *At one point in development Ultraman Nexus was meant to be a show called Ultraman Cross and was conceived as a foil to its predecessor; Ultraman Cosmos. **As production on the movie that eventually became The Next involved more of the crew from the new show, the decision was made to merge the show into the movie's continuity, and it was renamed Nexus. *Ultraman Nexus is is the first show explicitly made for an older audience; being geared towards teenagers and adults. *This is the last series to use Ending Credits. The following shows until Ultra Galaxy removed Ending Credits. *This the first and only Ultra Series where Ultraman's host was not the main character. **It is also the first show with multiple hosts for a single Ultraman. *Excluding the Ultra Mini Series, this Ultra Series has the least number of episodes compared to the entire Ultra Series. **However, if the Director Cut of episode 29 counts as 2 episodes and the Special Episode (which is 1 hour long) counts as 2 episodes, the series has a total 40 episodes. This makes it the same length as the Ultraman Max series. External links * Official Website (CBC) * Official Website (TBS) * Official Ultra N-Project Website * Tsuburaya Station Web